While drones in the sky have been a thing for some time now, the time is coming for underwater drones
NEMO, as you may have guessed based on the name alone, is a 4K underwater drone that, much like the drones you are used to for flying into the sky, looks to expand the creative capabilities of photographers and videographers underwater. The new submersible drone, capable of diving up to 100 meters (328 feet), has been on Kickstarter and with 16 days remaining (at the time of writing), the projects have almost doubled their initial funding goals.
Much like the DJI Phantom’s of the world, the team behind NEMO is looking to expand the creative possibilities for photographers and videographers who would like to take their projects underwater. The team says the NEMO drone is capable of stable shots (so the tide won’t screw up your footage) and thanks to the 4K camera built in you will be able to capture some amazingly detailed images under the water. Another cool feature? VR Goggles, which will allow you to see what the drone is seeing underwater; and long underwater shoot times will not be an issue, as the unit comes with a quickly replaceable modular battery which means extending shoots is quick and painless.
The interesting thing about niche products like this will always be the pricing, and surprisingly it is actually not bad at all. For the basic kit, which will include the App for control, the private WiFi connection, the NEMO drone, battery and a 30m tethering cable can be yours for just $999, a full $800 savings off the planned MSRP for the kit, which will be $1,799. So this is a really special deal, and if you are one that will have a need for underwater footage, this could be an excellent way to get that.
They even have some unbiased reviews from third party individuals who have had a chance to play with the prototype units; an excellent move, because another popular issue with products including built-in cameras is the worry about image quality or video codecs, etc. These reviews confirm the drone is capable of some good things.
The team has set an ambitious delivery goal as well, shooting for July of 2018, meaning you won’t even have to wait all that long to get your NEMO drone in the mail once the Kickstarter ends at the end of May.
If you are interested in supporting the project, or simply just learning more about it; you can find all the of details over on the NEMO Kickstarter page.
